"Funky downtempo" is potentially a lame way to describe music, but here, it's quite fitting. "Duru People" exhibits that musky, stinky-face sound, complete with some complimentary Beastie Boys-esque vocal samples. Midtempo producer Ed Royal provides a live sounding retake. "Shapeshifter" continues the...   click for more

Digital EP drawn from the official Bob Marley remix series originally issued on 12" in early 08. Despite low expectations, the series was actually delivered as there were no electro mash-ups or trance versions to desecrate Mr. Marley's good name. For the...   click for more

Crazy Detroit representation on this one. First we have Dabrye on the beat, who's previous instrumental work (hip hop on the verge of techno) captured Prefuse's heart enough to release him on Eastern Developments. Then vocals come from Jay Dee(RIP) and Phat...   click for more

Dabrye breaks his silence with this awaited EP release. Although there's only one new original track, it's a banger. Plus, he's recruited Hip Hop legend AG, and dubstep champion Kode 9 and LA's finest beatmaker Flying Lotus to lend a hand...   click for more

Dabrye's Instrmntl was been one of our best selling downtempo releases when it first dropped. Hardly known before his Eastern Developments release, Dabrye has put a huge mark in the downtempo production field. One/Three was released a year before Instrmtl on the...   click for more

Off the tar heels of one the finest downtempo records of 2003 (Instrumntl on the Eastern Developments label), Dabrye returns to his own label for this anticipated follow-up. "Making It Pay" begins the set exactly how you imagined. Delicate production, bass burps,...   click for more

Digital only single from the super-versatile Daedelus. "Hrs" reminds me of a Luke Vibert late 90s track. It's the kitchen sink style of production, mixing grime, d+b, and whatever samples he's got laying around. It's much more aggressive than we're used to...   click for more

When it comes to 80s electrofunk and boogie cuts, there's no one repping it as hard as Dam Funk. With full backing from PB Wolf, Wax Poetics and U-Tern, there's no argument that he is the realness. Don't know any other DJ...   click for more

Deadmau5 has been making noise both in the beatmaking community with his hard to categorize beats and the dance world with his aggressive electro-house tracks. This 2005 album shows that dual promise with a mix of hard/fast (Intelstat, 8Bit, Satisfaction), finessed downtempo...   click for more

The Gaslamp Killer put me onto these beats, so you know it's gotta be good. He played it at our LA store, and I knew it was something special. Whereas most Indian influenced beats sound like loops from Bollywood records hastily pasted...   click for more

One of my favorite downtempo records from 2002. It's an impressive 12 track release from Vienna's top hip-hop DJ and another solid release for the G-Stone label. The downtempo game has been overrun with dark beats since the MoWax days, but...   click for more

1994 solo album debut from downtempo pioneer DJ Krush. This album came at a time when Krush was firmly embedded in jazz sounds. His hip-hop influence can be clearly heard in the foundational loops, but the balance weighs more on the jazz...   click for more

Since Krush's beats have such a jazz foundation, it seems natural when he teams up with jazz musicians. Whether it's the studio players from "Roll and Tumble" or the soloist accompaniment of Ronny Jordan, Krush directs the player's jazz sound into his...   click for more

On "Dillagence," Spinna mixes mid-nineties drums and late seventies synthesizers for what hip-hop should sound like in 2008 (but sadly this breed is rare). In tribute to the late great J.Dilla, the bassline is a reworked version of the one from Phat...   click for more

Spinna tributes to Dilla. Need I say more? Just listen to "Dilla Is The G.O.A.T." and be prepared to press the add to cart. Imagine the suave space sounds of Dilla be flipped by master Spinna. It's hip hop, but wait -...   click for more